more information

Intel presents the Falcon 8+ professional drone

Intel subsidiary Ascending Technologies is releasing the Falcon 8+, a new high-end drone for professional applications. This octocopter is intended for use in maintenance inspections over difficult terrain.

Intel Falcon 8+: This professional drone can conduct inspection tours of up to 26 minutes. (Photo: Intel)

Flying object with "Intel Inside"

Professional drone for industry and research: German Intel subsidiary Ascending Technologies presented the Falcon 8+, a new version of its professional octocopter in a distinctive V-shaped design, at the Intergeo trade show in Hamburg, Germany. The drone is intended for the North American market and meets the corresponding regulatory standards.

Intel focuses on a failsafe design

The flight system equipped with Intel technology is structured redundantly, so that even the failure of individual components cannot cause it to crash. Its navigation sensor system including barometer, compass, gyroscope and accelerometer is even present in triplicate. The drone also uses GPS and GLONASS for navigation.

Intel's drone is powered by eight 125-watt electric motors, which drive rotor blades measuring 20 centimeters in diameter. With these, the octocopter can attain speeds of up to 16 meters per second in manual mode, the equivalent of about 60 kph. And under GPS direction it still reaches 40 kilometers an hour. Two Intel battery packs provide the power to keep it in flight for 16 to 26 minutes. The device weighs in at up to 2.8 kilograms, with a maximum load capacity of 800 grams according to the manufacturer.

The generous remote, which Intel has dubbed the Cockpit, is protected from dust and water and equipped with a Windows tablet. Drone pilots can access live views with a resolution of up to 1080p, from as far away as 500 meters, with a maximum navigation range of one kilometer.

Like its predecessors, the Falcon 8+ is specifically intended for industrial maintenance inspections in difficult terrain. Service personnel can use the drone to take 3D images of oil platforms or large jumbo jets, for instance. The device is also suitable for surveying using mounted gimbals.

Intel has not yet divulged when the Falcon 8+ will reach the market, or what the drone's pricepoint will be.